Sleeper are an English Britpop band, fronted by Louise Wener and formed in London. The group had eight UK Top 40hitsingles and three UK Top 10 albums during the 1990s.[3] Their music was also featured in the soundtrack of the pop cultural hit movie Trainspotting. The band split up in 1998 but reunited in 2017.

Jon Stewart met Louise Wener at Manchester University in 1987 in a political philosophy class.[4] They played in a number of bands at university, then after graduating they moved to London to seek gigs. Wener later wrote that "we sounded not unlike the Sundays, but as time went on our music became increasingly influenced by US bands such as Hole, Nirvana and, most especially, the Pixies".[5] They advertised for new band members in the Melody Maker ("Bass player and drummer wanted. Influences The Pixies and The Partridge Family") and recruited Diid Osman and Andy Maclure.[6]

At one point, the band called themselves Surrender Dorothy,[7] after the smoke trail in the sky from the Wizard of Oz movie, but abandoned this idea after discovering that several other bands had done the same thing. They subsequently chose the name 'Sleeper' after the Woody Allenmovie, and because it has a number of different meanings (a spy, an unexpected hit, etc.).[8] After moving to Camden and receiving interest from record labels, Sleeper signed to Indolent Records, which was an "indie label" in marketing only, in 1993 and released three EPs and singles before their breakthrough single release, "Inbetweener",[9] which notably featured UK TV personality Dale Winton in the promo video. Prior to the release of "Inbetweener" Sleeper had been the opening band for Blur on their tour to promote the Parklife album, and they became closely associated with Britpop as a result.[10]

The band's debut release Smart was certified gold by the BPI for sales of over 100,000 copies. It was followed by the platinum-selling release The It Girl which yielded four singles and airplay chart hits "What Do I Do Now?", "Nice Guy Eddie", "Sale of the Century" and "Statuesque".[11] Sleeper recorded a cover of the Blondie song "Atomic", which was used in the film Trainspotting, after Blondie refused to allow the use of the original version. "Statuesque" also features in the movie and its follow-up soundtrack volume. The band’s third album, Pleased to Meet You, was released to lacklustre sales and a public mood changed by the end of Britpop and its association with Cool Britannia, and the band split after a final headline tour around the UK.[1]

After Sleeper split, Wener and Maclure recorded material for a new project, aimed at a more mainstream market and featuring a guest appearance by George Michael. The project was never completed however,
[12] and Wener went on to have a career as a novelist. She released her fourth book for Hodder & Stoughton in 2008. Wener also features prominently as an interviewee in John Dower's feature film documentary on Britpop, Live Forever (2003).

A greatest hits compilation, with track listing and artwork by the band themselves, was released on Sony/BMG in 2007. Their first two albums were reissued as deluxe versions on 29 November 2010, with second discs of B-sides and live tracks.

Sleeper reformed in 2017 to play in four British cities in July and August as part of the Star Shaped Festival alongside other Britpop acts including Space, Dodgy and The Bluetones.[15] They went on to headline an eleven-date tour of smaller venues in England in the spring of 2018.[16]

On 1 May 2018 Sleeper announced that they would be recording a new album for release in early 2019, and playing three UK concerts in November 2018.[17]

Frontwoman Louise Wener, along with Elastica's Justine Frischmann, was one of Britpop's biggest female stars, and became one of its enduring sex symbols, placing highly in Melody Maker and NME "Sexiest Woman" polls two years running. Wener enjoyed significant media coverage, including an NME front cover and a slot as guest presenter of Top of the Pops, and multiple appearances on TFI Friday. Billboard described how Wener's "forthright opinions on female sexuality, censorship, and other issues, have been manna for feature editors."[18]

The band was the inspiration for the phrase "Sleeperbloke", referring to the disparity between the glamorous singer Wener and the other frequently ignored members of the band (who tended to be far more anonymous and stood at the back). This pejorative term was used by music press journalists and musicians, to refer to any person of limited standing within a band or an especially drab and unremarkable individual. The "Sleeperblokes" themselves were reported to be highly amused by the phrase, and even produced an ironic "Sleeperbloke" T-shirt to go with Wener's "Another Female Fronted Band" T-shirt, both of which sold well.[19]